UK HealthCare

UK HealthCare Named Official Health Care Provider for Keeneland’s Race Meets

Keeneland/UK HealthCare chase vehicle

LEXINGTON, Ky. (Oct. 7, 2021) Keeneland and UK HealthCare announced today that they have entered into a partnership in which UK HealthCare will become the track’s “Official First Aid Provider” of first aid and emergency medical services to racing participants, fans and staff during race meets.

UK HealthCare will staff and equip Keeneland’s state-of-the-art first aid center, and their trauma personnel will support the emergency response vehicles stationed on track during the race day. Through this partnership, the EMS care available to jockeys, participants and patrons at Keeneland will be an extension of the Level 1 trauma service received at UK HealthCare’s emergency room.    

Race-day fans also will notice a uniquely designed “chase vehicle,” developed and co-branded by Keeneland and UK HealthCare, which follows horses and riders around the track during every race. The chase vehicle carries paramedics and an expert horse handler to optimize both the efficiency and effectiveness of Keeneland’s coordinated response for humans and horses in the event of need.

“Keeneland’s partnership with UK HealthCare offers an exciting opportunity to further elevate the quality of care we provide our riders, horsemen, patrons and staff during race meets,” Keeneland Vice President of Equine Safety Stuart Brown, D.V.M., said. “We are fortunate in this community to have a medical network of the caliber and quality offered by UK HealthCare, and we look forward to working with their talented professionals for many years to come.”     

At the forefront of the partnership with UK HealthCare is Keeneland’s commitment to set the standard for optimizing rider safety and welfare, and to build upon advancements made through the track’s work with the Jockeys’ Guild and Barry Schumer, M.D., who Keeneland thanks for his many years of medical service.

“We’re honored to partner with Keeneland to provide critical medical services to participants and fans alike during this racing season,” said Mark F. Newman, M.D., UK executive vice president for health affairs. “This latest endeavor adds to our growing list of collaborations, and we’re excited to continue the university’s proud history with Keeneland.”

This latest collaborative effort between Keeneland and UK is an outgrowth of their shared focus on community education, philanthropy and engagement. In 2019, UK HealthCare became sponsor of the Keeneland Kids Club, the track’s run/walk program and the First Lady (G1), a Breeders’ Cup “Win & You’re In” stakes held opening Saturday of the Fall Meet.

Keeneland and UK have a rich history of working together on initiatives aimed at bettering the community and horse industry. Since 1940, these two signature Kentucky brands have successfully teamed to fund scholarships and research programs, support the DanceBlue marathon, hosted Big Blue Day at Keeneland in the fall and donate $100,000 to the UK Athletics’ CATS academic center as part of the Maker’s Mark commemorative bottle series. In the spring of 2019, Keeneland gifted $1.3 million to create the Keeneland Endowed Chair in Equine Veterinary Science at UK’s Gluck Equine Research Center.

###

About Keeneland

Since its first race meet began 85 years ago on Oct. 15, 1936, the Keeneland Association has devoted itself to the health and vibrancy of the thoroughbred industry. The world’s largest thoroughbred auction house, Keeneland conducts four sales a year, in January, April, September and November, and presents online auctions through the Keeneland Digital Sales Ring. Graduates of Keeneland sales dominate racing across the globe at every level. In April and October, Keeneland offers some of the highest caliber and richest thoroughbred racing in the world. Keeneland hosted the Breeders’ Cup World Championships in 2015 and 2020 and is holding the event again on Nov. 4-5, 2022. Uniquely structured, Keeneland is a privately held company with a not-for-profit mission that returns its earnings to the industry and the community in the form of higher purses and millions of dollars donated in support of horse industry initiatives and charitable contributions for education, research, and health and human services throughout Central Kentucky. Keeneland also maintains the Keeneland Library, a world-renowned public research institution with the mission of preserving information about the thoroughbred industry. To learn more, visit Keeneland.com.

About UK HealthCare 

UK HealthCare is a health system based on the University of Kentucky campus in Lexington, Kentucky, comprising four hospitals, 37 clinics and centers, 67 outreach locations and six health profession colleges. UK HealthCare is home to the only level 1 trauma center in the region, the only level IV Neonatal Intensive Care Unit in the region, and the UK Markey Cancer Center, the state’s only National Cancer Institute-designated cancer center. The University of Kentucky Albert B. Chandler Hospital has been ranked as the best hospital in the region for six years in a row. UK HealthCare is committed to the pillars of academic health care — research, education and clinical care. To learn more, visit ukhealthcare.uky.edu.

As the state’s flagship, land-grant institution, the University of Kentucky exists to advance the Commonwealth. We do that by preparing the next generation of leaders — placing students at the heart of everything we do — and transforming the lives of Kentuckians through education, research and creative work, service and health care. We pride ourselves on being a catalyst for breakthroughs and a force for healing, a place where ingenuity unfolds. It's all made possible by our people — visionaries, disruptors and pioneers — who make up 200 academic programs, a $476.5 million research and development enterprise and a world-class medical center, all on one campus.   

In 2022, UK was ranked by Forbes as one of the “Best Employers for New Grads” and named a “Diversity Champion” by INSIGHT into Diversity, a testament to our commitment to advance Kentucky and create a community of belonging for everyone. While our mission looks different in many ways than it did in 1865, the vision of service to our Commonwealth and the world remains the same. We are the University for Kentucky.